Hide and Seek
by onemorehandmedown
Summary: Sam and Dean stumble across a hunt involving missing children and a hide and seek creature. The search turns up more than they'd bargained for...
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer - I do not own anything whatsoever to do with Supernatural. I write for fun and fancy to please old Nancy...and hopefully everyone who takes the time to read my stuff!

A/N: I think I can safely say there are no spoilers in this story. There are definitely no spoilers for season 5 because, apart from the fact that it isn't showing in Australia yet, I wrote this story before season four started. Rated for minor swearing.

**Chapter One**

Dean was not having a good night. It seemed his charm was on the blink; the pretty bartender was completely disinterested in him despite his best efforts. Oh well, they were leaving tomorrow anyway. They hadn't found their next job yet but it was best to avoid staying in one place for too long when you were paying for your accommodation with fake credit cards.

He made his way over to a table in the back corner, where Sam was sitting in front of the laptop scouring the internet for anything that sounded like their kind of weird.

"So, find anything geekboy?"

Sam frowned. "Something isn't right here."

"Tell me about it." Dean glared in the direction of the bar.

"Oh, wasn't she interested?" Sam said with an exaggerated pout.

Dean grimaced. "She told me that if I wanted to get laid I should crawl up a chicken's ass and wait."

It seemed like an eternity before Sam stopped laughing and Dean was feeling more than a little pissed off.

"So glad I could entertain you." He snapped. "Now what were you talking about when you said something was wrong here?"

"Children have been disappearing. There have been seven so far. All the disappearances happened while the kids were playing hide and seek, as though they hid so well they couldn't be found. It sounds like our kind of weird."

"You might have something there. You ready to go back to the motel? I'm beat."

"Yeah I guess."

Sam packed up the computer and they made their way back to the Evanston Budget Motel.

***

"So, where do you think we should start?"

They were sitting in a rather tacky diner just up the road from their motel eating breakfast. Or at least, Dean was eating breakfast. Sam seemed more interested in his computer than his food.

"I say we go talk to Caroline Whelan. She was looking after four year old Evelyn Stenner when she went missing two days ago. Caroline might be more likely to remember something than say Fiona Carlsen whose son went missing a month ago."

"I guess that means we'll be posing as detectives then. Do we have to wear those stupid suits?"

"If you want Caroline to believe you when you say you're a detective then yes."

"I hate wearing a tie."

Sam rolled his eyes. "I know. You've only told me that a million times."

"They're a stupid invention. I mean, what sane person would think wearing a noose is a good idea?" Dean continued.

"Dean, will you just shut up about ties. I've been sick of hearing about it for the past year. Do you want to get some information out of Caroline or not?"

Dean gave an exaggerated sigh. "Yes."

"Well stop complaining then."

***

It was nearly midday when they pulled up in front of 3/36 Mavis Street. It was a small house with a tiny but immaculately kept front garden. Dean opened the front gate with one hand. He was about to walk in when he was distracted by a sharp smack on the hand that was busily fidgeting with his tie.

"If you don't leave that damn tie alone I swear I'll string you up with it!" Sam snapped.

Dean shot him a glare but dropped the tie as requested.

It was only a few steps from the gate to the front door. Dean rang the bell and was rewarded almost at once with the sound of approaching footsteps. The door swung open to reveal a young redheaded woman. She had no makeup on and appeared to have been crying.

"Are you Caroline Whelan?" Dean asked politely.

"Yes." She looked at them somewhat apprehensively.

"Hi, I'm Dean Sawyer and my partner here is Sam Trelawney. We're detectives with the Evanston police department and we were hoping you could answer a few questions for us about Evelyn Stenner's disappearance."

"I don't understand. I already spoke to the police when I reported Evie missing."

"I know, but we have to make sure we cover all the bases. Can we come in?"

"First let me see some ID."

Dean pulled out the card he'd just made at the local copy store and Sam followed suit. Caroline peered at them and for a moment Dean thought they were going to be sprung. Then she smiled.

"Ok then. Come in." She opened the door a bit wider and stood to one side.

As they followed her in Dean chanced a quick glance at Sam and smiled to himself. Clearly his brother hadn't worked out yet that Dean had named him after a crazy psychic woman in the Harry Potter series.

Caroline led them into a small lounge room containing two two-seater sofas and motioned for them to take a seat on one. She herself sat down on the other and looked at Dean and Sam intently.

"So, what would you like to know?"

Sam took over. "Well for starters Ms Whelan, was there anyone else in the house when Evelyn disappeared?"

"Call me Caroline. And no, there was no-one else here, just me and Evie. I just can't understand how she could just vanish in here. I mean, we were playing hide and seek but look at this place. It isn't big enough to get lost in and I swear I didn't hear either of the outside doors opening. None of the windows were open." Her voice was cracking; she seemed to be on the brink of tears.

"You didn't hear any other noises?"

"Nothing. I checked the yard for good measure, even though I was sure Evie hadn't gone out there. It's so small anyway, nowhere much to hide." Caroline sniffed.

In the end they didn't get much more from Caroline, other than to find out that Evelyn had been staying with her whilst her mother was in hospital having treatment for cancer. Dean couldn't help feeling sorry for the woman. Just what she needed when she was fighting cancer, her only child to go missing. Come hell or high water Dean was determined to find Evelyn Stenner and bring her home.

***

By the time night had fallen and they were back at the motel they had visited another three houses and found out nothing new. Fiona Carlsen wouldn't let them in, Jenny Morack was so drunk she was incapable of talking sense and while Joseph Rau had been sober and willing to talk he hadn't been able to give them any new information. They were planning to visit Linda and Geoff Cohen, Gabrielle Lehman and Julia O'Reilly in the morning but Dean wasn't holding his breath for any new information. He sat on his bed cleaning his gun while Sam tapped away at the laptop.

"Found anything interesting?"

"I think I know what we're after. I think it's an Ijiraq."

"A what?" Dean had never heard of such a thing before.

"An Ijiraq. They're hide and seek creatures. The disappearances fit the thing's mo perfectly…" He trailed off.

"But-" Dean prompted.

"But I can't find anything about how to kill it."

"What does it do with the kids after it takes them? And please tell me it doesn't eat them."

"No Dean, it doesn't eat them. According to Inuit mythology ijiraqs will approach a child playing hide and seek and offer to hide them really well. If the child accepts the offer the ijiraq takes them somewhere they will never be found and abandons them."

"Wait, the last time I checked the Inuit come from up north like Canada and Alaska. Why would this thing be in Missouri?"

"I don't know. Maybe it's easier for it to take children here because they haven't been warned about it."

"So if it just abandons the kids there might be a chance that some of the more recent victims, like Evelyn for instance, might still be alive."

"I guess so, but even if they have shelter I doubt the ijiraq would have left them with food and water and the weather's turning cold. If they're alive we need to find them soon."

***

Sienna stood at the mouth of the cave, looking around and trying to work out which way home was. All she could see was trees that all looked the same and the stream she'd been using for drinking water. She was only six but despite her young age she realised that she and Evelyn couldn't stay here. There was nothing to eat, it was very cold and there was no mummy and daddy to keep them safe. There was one other person there besides the two girls – a little boy whose name Sienna didn't know. She didn't know his name because he'd been asleep when she arrived and he still hadn't woken up however many days later. Sienna thought he'd probably gone to be with the angels like Grandpa Watson did.

Sienna called out a few times, as loud as she could with Evelyn helping her. There was no answer, no footsteps, no rescuers coming to take them home.

"Don't worry Evie, we'll try again later. Someone will come." Sienna said it as much for herself as for Evelyn. She had to keep believing that sooner or later someone would hear them. Before they went to be with the angels too.

* * *

Thanks for reading! Reviews are appreciated :)


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Still don't own anything...

A/N: A big thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this story and especially to the two of you who left reviews, I love to hear what you think!

**Chapter Two**

"So where do you think we should look? Is there anywhere in particular that this thing likes to hide the kids?"

It was morning and it hadn't taken Dean long to convince Sam that they should abandon the idea of questioning the other parents and carers and focus on finding any surviving children. Having showered and eaten, they were now sitting at the small table in their motel room poring over maps of the area.

"Well there was some mention of caves but I think anywhere the kids wouldn't be found would be fair game."

"It looks like there's a wooded area here," Dean pointed at a spot a couple of miles east of Evanston, "Probably lots of places to hide a kid out there."

"I guess."

"Well let's start there then." Dean grabbed the map and Sam followed him out the door.

***

The first thing Dean noticed as he pulled the Impala off the road was that the wooded area was a hell of a lot bigger than it had seemed on the map. It could take a couple of days for him and Sam to check the place thoroughly. Days that the kids, if they were still alive, might not have. He could tell from Sam's expression that his brother was thinking roughly the same thing.

"Come on Sammy. We have to try." He opened the door with a creak and left the car as Sam did the same.

Meeting at the Impala's trunk they promptly began to argue over what weapons they should take. Dean wished they could take everything with them, given they didn't know how to kill the ijiraq, but unfortunately Sam took him seriously when he said as much.

"Dean, we can't carry everything. Not unless you're keen on having a broken back."

"Well then what do you suggest oh brainy one? Oh, wait – that's right. You haven't got a clue how to kill the damn thing."

"Dean, we're not kids and we won't be playing hide and seek. It's probably not going to go after us. Hell, it might not even be here for all we know."

"Yeah well, if it is around, don't you think it might be a little pissed that we're planning to rescue its little hostages?"

"Dean, I repeat – we cannot physically carry all those weapons…"

Dean cut him off mid sentence. "I realise I'm not the one who scored a full ride to Stanford but I'm not stupid! If it was possible to carry all those weapons at once I'd probably keep them in a bag instead of all over the trunk. Look, you've been reading about this thing so tell me – what do you think might hurt it?"

Sam thought for a moment. "Well it isn't a spirit so salt probably isn't going to do much… let's just take guns, a few different types of rounds, and some holy water. That should just about cover us don't you think? Oh, and knives."

Dean nodded. "Sounds good to me. Now let's get going, daylight's wasting."

Fully equipped, they jumped the fence and entered the trees.

***

Midday came and went. Dean's stomach was growling it's displeasure at the lack of food and he would have loved some caffeine. After reluctantly agreeing with Sam that they'd cover more ground more quickly if they split up the brothers had separated and despite their arrangement to call each other to check in every fifteen minutes Dean was feeling lonely. Right now he would have happily put up with whiny Sam, argumentative Sam or even prank pulling Sam just to have some company. He'd seen no trace of anything supernatural so far. In fact the only living thing he'd seen other than various trees and plants was a squirrelly looking thing that scooted up a tree at his approach. The trees all looked the same and if Dean didn't have a well defined sense of direction he would have had no idea which way it was to the Impala. It would be ridiculously easy to lose someone in here.

As he continued on, swearing a few times as he tripped on hidden tree roots, he became aware that he could hear something. It sounded like running water and it seemed to be coming from the general direction in which he was heading. He couldn't remember seeing a river marked on the map but that didn't mean much. He'd been looking for somewhere you could hide a child and a river just didn't seem like a likely place. Sam would probably remember; his brother seemed to absorb even details that Dean thought irrelevant.

Before long a stream came into view through the trees. As Dean drew closer he thought he could hear something other than the sound of water chattering over rocks. A human voice perhaps? It was faint and Dean couldn't make out what it was saying, but as he listened he was filled with fresh hope that at least one of the kids was alive. He set off, following the sound, hoping that it wasn't the sound of the ijiraq screwing with him. The ijiraq had better hope that it wasn't the sound of the ijiraq screwing with him. Dean might not know how to kill it but if it was messing with him he'd give it a damn good try.

The voice became louder as he went until Dean could just make out the word help.

"I'm coming!" He called, hoping that whoever it was could hear him. "Just keep calling so I can find you!"

Whether or not he'd been heard the calls continued, growing louder and louder, until Dean found himself opposite a cave where two little girls looked out, calling for help. The stream was separated him from them but it was narrow and didn't look very deep. Dean had no doubt he'd be able to cross it. He pulled out his cell to call Sam.

***

Sienna couldn't believe it when she heard someone reply to their yelling. She'd registered little beyond 'I'm coming'. Someone was coming to rescue them! She beamed at Evelyn.

"Did you hear that?" Evie nodded enthusiastically "Come on, big breath, we have to keep shouting so he can find us." She knew their rescuer was a man; the voice she'd heard was deep like Daddy's.

Finally he came into view across the stream. Sienna's heart sank. How would he get across the stream? She was way too scared to try swimming in that.

She watched as he pulled a cell phone out of his jacket and started talking to someone. Hanging up, he turned to face her.

"It's ok, I'm coming. I just have to find the best place to cross the water." His voice was soothing and Sienna immediately trusted him. This wasn't someone who'd let a bit of water stop them.

* * *

Thanks for reading! Reviews are appreciated :)


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Same as always - I don't own anything whatsoever to do with Supernatural.

A/N: A big thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this. I should point out that the reason Sam is having difficulty finding anything on how to kill an ijiraq is that I haven't been able to find anything. I also haven't been able to find a physical description so I have used my imagination a bit!

**Chapter 3**

"Sammy, I found them!" Dean was so excited he couldn't help shouting into the phone.

"Dude, you're sending me deaf here." Sam complained. "How many are there?"

"Two that I can see."

"Where are you?"

"I'm by the stream. There's a cave on the other side with two little girls in it."

"Could you be a bit more specific?" Dean could hear the rustling of the map as Sam consulted it. "Cause that stream runs just about the entire length of the woods and then some."

Dean swore. "Of course it does." He told Sam everything he could think of that might help pinpoint his location.

Finally it seemed Sam was satisfied. "Ok, I'll be there in five."

Finished with the phone call, Dean called out some reassurances to the children and started looking for somewhere he could cross.

By the time he found a suitable place Sam had arrived. They made their way across together. When they reached the middle Sam slipped and fell. He came up spluttering and cursing under his breath.

"Dude, language." He glanced in the direction of the cave and the children as he helped Sam up.

"Well what would you have said if you'd just fallen into a bath of freezing cold water?" Sam demanded irritably.

"Probably the same thing." Dean admitted. "But you know, their parents might not be very impressed if we return them with a whole new vocabulary of curse words."

"True."

They continued on with Sam muttering under his breath about the water being too wet and slimy rocks creeping up on him.

Finally they reached the children.

"Hi," Dean said, crouching down. "What are your names?"

The older looking one spoke for both of them. "I'm Sienna and she's Evelyn." Dean recognised the names; the older one was clearly Joseph Rau's daughter and Evelyn of course was the child who'd disappeared from Caroline Whelan's place.

"I'm Dean and this is my brother Sam. Is there anyone else here?"

"Just a boy, but I think he's gone to be with the angels." Sienna answered.

Dean motioned for Sam to go and check out the cave. He returned moments later shaking his head, a sad expression on his face.

"Listen, we're going to get you out of here. But to get back to our car we have to cross the stream. Are you guys up for that?"

"The water's too fast. What if it washes us away?"

"It won't, Sammy and I will be carrying you."

"I saw him fall over before." Sienna pointed at Sam.

"That won't be happening again." Sam told her firmly.

"Are you sure I'm not too big? I'm six you know and Daddy says six year olds are too big to carry."

"Sweetie, I've had to carry him before," Dean jerked a thumb in Sam's direction, "I don't think you're going to be a problem."

Sienna looked at Evelyn. "What do you think Evie? Will we let them take us across the water?"

Evelyn nodded.

"So you'll come across the river with us then?" Dean asked.

"Yes."

"Ok, let's go."

The small group walked down to the edge of the stream in front of the place where Dean and Sam had crossed the first time. Dean went to pick up Sienna.

"No. You take Evie."

"Why?"

"Because I'm bigger, so if Sam falls over again I might not wash away."

Dean wasn't about to waste time arguing with her. In fact, he felt sort of proud of the way she was protecting the younger girl. He would have done the same thing for Sam.

"Fine. Sammy, you're taking Sienna and I'm taking Evelyn."

His brother shrugged and nodded. "Ok."

They started across the river, Sienna on Sam's shoulders and Evelyn held snugly on Dean's hip. As he stepped into the water Dean noticed that Evelyn stiffened a little. Glancing at her face he realised she was scared.

"So, Evelyn, what does your mum do?" Maybe talking to her would take her mind off the water rushing beneath her.

"She works at the office and sometimes she goes to the hospital and I stay with Aunty Caroline."

"Aunty Caroline eh? I met Caroline and she didn't mention she was your aunty."

"She isn't really but she's Mummy's best friend so I call her that."

"Ah. And what about your dad, what does he do?"

"He plays hide and seek."

"Hide and seek?"

"Yeah, he's very good at it. Even Mummy can't find him and she's been looking for a long time."

***

They had just reached the opposite bank when a very odd looking creature ran out of the trees in front of them. It had long pointed ears, ridiculously big eyes, full lips and the longest fingers Dean had ever seen. It was almost like some ludicrously deformed elf. It was short, barely reaching Dean's waist and it was looking daggers at the entire group.

"You put them back!" Dean had to work hard to suppress a laugh. The thing sounded like the Wicked Witch of the West from the Wizard of Oz. He gathered that this was the ijiraq and it was clearly not happy.

"Listen to me you little creep, playtime is over. I suggest you leave now before I cure your lead deficiency." Dean snarled.

The ijiraq did not take the hint and it advanced on Dean, growling and baring its teeth.

"Sammy, I want you to take the kids back to the car so I can deal with this…well I can't say it in front of them."

He gave Evelyn to Sam. "Who'll have your back?" Sam protested.

Dean gave him a 'don't mess with me' look. "Evelyn and Sienna need you to cover their backs, now move!"

Sam took the hint and left. The ijiraq tried to follow but found its path blocked by Dean who was fixing it with a poisonous glare.

"Fine, I suppose you do want to leave here with a bullet up your ass. I wouldn't recommend it but if you insist…" He drew his gun and shot it a couple of times.

The consecrated wrought iron rounds, to go by the high pitched shrieks the creature was emitting, appeared to cause the ijiraq considerable pain but didn't kill it. Dean had some ordinary rounds but he doubted they'd achieve anything so he went for the silver bullets next. Unfortunately that gave the ijiraq time to rush him. It was glaring at Dean but didn't look anything but comical; for all that it was probably trying to look fierce. He sidestepped the ijiraq's charge and it went speeding past him to crash into a tree. Apparently it had about as much control over the direction it was heading in as your average toddler, given how much space there

was between the tree and Dean.

Before it could turn around and have another go Dean shot it again. Unfortunately he could probably have just thrown a tissue given the obvious ineffectiveness of the silver bullets now embedded in the ijiraq's back. Back to the consecrated wrought iron rounds then – at least they would cause the thing some pain.

As the ijiraq charged at him again Dean shot it three times in each leg. It fell to the ground howling and when it tried to get up it couldn't. It was out of action for the time being at least and until he found out how to kill it that was good enough for Dean. He and Sam could come back tomorrow when they no longer had children to look out for. Flinging one last curse in the direction of the whimpering ijiraq, Dean stalked off in the direction of his baby.

***

Dean found Sam and the kids crouching in the bushes a short way back from the road.

"Cop car went past." Sam explained. "You didn't give me the keys anyway."

Dean raised an eyebrow. "Dude, since when do you need keys?"

"Dean, do we have to talk about this now?" He looked meaningfully in Sienna and Evelyn's direction.

Dean took the hint. "I guess not. Come on, let's get in the car and leave before it gets dark. I've tripped over enough tree roots for one day."

* * *

Thanks for reading! Reviews are appreciated :)


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: See previous chapters

**Chapter Four**

The road was now deserted. Sienna got into the car with no trouble but Evelyn was being clingy and it took Dean ten minutes to convince her to let go of him. By the time he got her into the car Sienna was already asleep and barely five minutes into the drive Evelyn joined her. As if on cue a hushed argument erupted in the front seat.

"I'm telling you Dean, most people would call the police if they found a couple of little kids in the middle of nowhere."

"Oh that's a great idea Sam, except the cops will probably take one look at us and decide that we kidnapped them! But, hey if you want to get locked up don't let me stop you!"

"You have a point. Ok, so we take them to the hospital, tell the staff we found them while hiking and disappear before the police arrive."

"That might work, but I still think we should just take them home. They need to be with their parents."

"Dean, how many times do I need to tell you we can't do that? Caroline and Joseph both think we're detectives. How are we going to convince them to let the police know that the kids are no longer missing when they think we are the police? And even if we can they'll find out real quick that Detectives Dean Sawyer and Sam Trelawney don't exist! It's just another way to put more cops on our tail!"

***

It was Dean who eventually caved, giving in to the hospital idea. He pulled the Impala into a parking space near the entrance to Evanston District Hospital, got out and lifted Evelyn gently out of the back seat as Sam did the same with Sienna. Evelyn stirred a little and opened her eyes for a moment, but apparently Dean's arms were to her liking as she closed them again and snuggled into his collar.

As they were walking across the parking lot, two women emerged from the front door of the hospital. Dean immediately recognised one of them as Caroline Whelan. The other woman had a scarf wrapped around her head. Evelyn's mother perhaps? This was not good.

"Sam!" Dean hissed, inclining his head in the direction of the women. He could tell by the way his brother's face blanched that Sam had recognised Caroline too.

They picked up their pace but it was in vain. The woman wearing the scarf looked in their direction and her jaw dropped.

"Evie!" She cried, running towards them with Caroline in hot pursuit.

It certainly got Evelyn's attention. She jerked awake at the sound of her name.

"MUMMY!"

There was nothing to do but stand there and let the women come to them. It didn't take very long.

Dean put Evelyn down and she ran to her mother.

"Evie, Evie, where have you been darl?"

There was something familiar about her voice, her accent, but he couldn't quite place it. Then she stood up and looked at him. There was something about her face. With soft dark curls like Evelyn's…the penny dropped with a resounding clang.

"Mim?" He breathed.

"Dean? I can't believe it!" She grabbed him in a hug.

She was frailer than he remembered, but she still wore the same perfume. Mim was one of the few girls that he'd actually stuck with for a while.

"You know him?" Caroline asked curiously. "Because I thought he and the other one were detectives. They came to see me yesterday, asking about Evie's disappearance."

"He's wasn't a detective when I knew him. At least, I'm fairly sure he wasn't." She looked at Dean. "Are you a detective now?"

"Sort of, but not for any police department. Listen, Sam and I, we look into things like this. Weird disappearances or deaths – well, pretty much weird occurrences in general." He looked a Caroline. "And I'm sorry we lied to you but you never would have spoken to us otherwise."

Caroline just eyed Dean suspiciously.

"Where did you find Evie?" Mim asked him.

"She was with Sienna here," he motioned at the wide eyed child in Sam's arms, "They were in a cave by a stream in some woods east of here." He decided not to mention the boy who'd died. "We thought it was best to take them to the hospital. They seem ok, but I didn't see any food in that cave, or a heater and neither of us is a doctor."

Mim sighed and looked at Evelyn. "Well, missy, as much as I'd like to take you home I think they might be right. Looks like we're going to the doctor." She looked back at Dean. "Lead on."

It was an anxious wait at the hospital. They were fairly certain that the kids were going to be ok, but Dean was incredibly keen to be out of there before the cops showed up as they inevitably would and as far as he could tell Sam felt the same. They had told the hospital staff where they found the girls and that there was a dead boy still in the cave. Joseph and Laura Rau had already arrived to be with Sienna (luckily they seemed too wrapped up in having Sienna back safe to take any notice of the brothers) and Dean was sure that the cops wouldn't be far behind. He was also finding the suspicious looks that Caroline kept directing at him a bit unnerving. Mim was seeing the doctor with Evelyn and Dean wanted to say goodbye to her, but if she didn't come out soon that wasn't going to happen.

They had just got up to leave when Mim and Evelyn emerged from the examination room.

"Evie's going to be ok," Mim told them. "She just has to eat dry toast and stuff for the first day or two, till her tummy gets used to food again and take some antibiotics just in case there was something nasty in that stream. Ready to go home?" She asked Evelyn.

Evelyn nodded tiredly.

"Well Mim, it was great to see you." Dean began.

"Oi! You don't think you're getting away from me that easily do you? Come on, come back to my place for a cuppa. It's the least I can do when you've rescued Evie for me."

Dean would be happy as long as they weren't at the hospital or anywhere else they were likely to meet the cops. Anyway, as Dean recalled Mim was an even more talented arguer than Sam.

"Ok. Do you have a car or do you want to come with us and help me find the place?"

"My car's at home. So I guess I'll come with you two."

Caroline cleared her throat.

"Sorry Caroline. It's just been ages since I last saw Dean."

Caroline sighed and managed a smile. "Just be careful." With that Caroline left.

Mim looked apologetically at Dean. "Sorry about that. She's tends to be a tad bit overprotective and lying to her wasn't a very good way to get her to like you."

Dean opened his mouth to reply but Sam got in first.

"Don't worry about it. He's used to it. Pissing people off is one of Dean's main talents."

"I don't know about that." Mim smiled knowingly. "He's got lots of talents."

"He likes to think so."

As they walked to the car Mim took a good long look at Sam.

"You're his brother aren't you?"

"Yeah. What did he tell you about me?"

"Not much. I didn't even know Dean had a brother until I found a picture of you that had fallen out of his wallet. I asked and he said you went away to uni somewhere. I know he missed you but I could tell he was so proud of you for getting a scholarship and all."

Dean cut her off before she could say anymore.

"Don't tell him that. Can't you see he's got a big enough head already?"

***

"So I'm guessing Mim was your girlfriend for longer than one night then?" They were waiting in the lounge room while Mim put Evelyn to bed.

"Yeah. We were together for about six months I think." Dean replied.

"So why didn't you know where her house was? Why didn't you know Caroline?"

"What is this, the Spanish Inquisition? Look, she lived somewhere in Illinois when we were together and in case you haven't noticed, we're in Missouri. Does that answer your questions?"

"I guess. But she didn't grow up in Illinois did she? I can't quite place her accent but I know she's not American."

"She's Australian, now will you please shut up? Put that freakishly big brain of yours to work and see if you can think of anywhere we might be able to find out what kills an ijiraq."

"You mean you didn't kill it?"

Dean hadn't dared to discuss the situation with Sam at the hospital with so many people around. Especially not with Caroline sitting right next to them glaring and probably eavesdropping for all she was worth.

"No, the best I could do was hurt it. The consecrated wrought iron rounds seemed to be very painful to it so I put some in its legs to stop it from following us. We'll have to go back out tomorrow and…"

He stopped abruptly when he heard Mim approaching.

"So, tea, coffee or hot chocolate?" She asked.

"Coffee." Dean answered. "I'll come and help you make it. Sammy's a bit fussy."

Mim shrugged. "Ok." She led Dean into the kitchen.

***

"So Mim," Dean began, as he took charge of the coffee maker, "Evelyn told me her dad is playing hide and seek."

He remembered giving the coffee maker to Mim as a birthday present back when they were together. It didn't look like it had been used much, but that wasn't surprising. Mim had appreciated the gesture but she'd never owned any kind of coffee maker before and preferred to just use the kettle. She usually drank tea at home anyway. Dean was more surprised that she'd kept the thing.

"Yeah, that's about right. I've been looking for him ever since I found out I was pregnant, but it's like he just vanished off the face of the earth."

"You've never found him? Not even a clue as to where he might be?"

"No. Are you offering to help me find him?"

"Maybe."

Mim came up beside him. "That's very sweet of you." She looked up at him and put her hand on his arm. "It's funny really, I've spent all these years looking for you and then you just show up out of the blue. Right when Evie needed you most."

* * *

Thanks for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: See previous chapters. I still don't own anything.

A/N: Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this and especially those taking the time to review :)

**Chapter 5**

All Dean could do was stare wide eyed. Mim couldn't mean what he thought she did, could she?

"Oh, come on Dean. Pick up your eyeballs and put them back in your head. Did it really never occur to you?"

It was a moment before Dean found his voice.

"Are you sure? Is she really mine?"

"Well the only other option is immaculate conception and as I understand it Mary got a visit from an angel before she got pregnant by the Holy Spirit. I didn't get any such visit so that leaves you." She paused. "To be honest, even if there was another possible father I think I'd be fairly certain she was yours. Didn't you notice her eyes? Every time I look at them I see you."

Dean thought about that and realised Mim was probably right. Set in a small face surrounded by soft curls, Evelyn's large eyes were a deep vivid green much like his own. Perhaps the reason he hadn't really noticed it before was that he didn't spend much time in front of a mirror. Or maybe it was because green eyes weren't really that uncommon. He smiled to himself as he pictured the child. His little girl was nothing if not cute. His little girl. He had a daughter.

"I'm sorry."

"What for?"

"For not being there for you, for Evelyn."

"Dean, you didn't even know that Evie existed. It's not as if you knew about her and just buggered off on us anyway. Anyway, you were there for her. If it wasn't for you and Sam Evie and Sienna probably would have died out there in that cave, just like that little boy." Mim's eyes and tone were kind.

"I know, but still…" He trailed off, not really knowing how to voice what he wanted to say.

Mim rolled her eyes at him. "I see you still haven't kicked that habit." She commented.

"What habit?"

"The one you have where you're just itching to blame yourself for every bloody wrong under the sun." She opened a cupboard and took out two mugs.

Dean watched her and raised his eyebrows. "Aren't you having any?"

"No, I'm still feeling a bit queasy from the chemo and I don't really think the recycled coffee look would suit my sofa."

"Point taken."

Dean filled the mugs with steaming hot coffee and added milk and sugar to Sam's. He probably would have preferred cream – Sam was such a girl – but one look in Mim's refrigerator had told him she still thought it was insane to add cream to hot drinks.

He picked up the mugs and made for the door. Mim stopped him.

"Dean, before we go back to Sam, I need to ask you something."

Her tone was nervous, setting off alarm bells in Dean's head, but he didn't let it show in his face.

"Ask away."

"Dean, you know I have cancer right?"

"Yeah, Caroline mentioned it." Suddenly Dean had a sinking feeling that he knew what this was about.

"Well, I don't know if I'm going to get better. It hasn't been responding very well to treatment. I mean, if I'm lucky this latest round of chemo might have had some effect but I don't know. I might not be around much longer." She paused for a moment before continuing. "I have no family, either here or back home. My sister died when she was a child, and my parents are both gone. I don't want Evie to end up in some foster home. Dean, will you look after Evie…if I die?"

"Yes." Dean didn't even hesitate. He didn't particularly want Evelyn to have to grow up the way he and Sam did, but she was his child, his family, and he wouldn't abandon her.

Mim gave an audible sigh of relief. "Thank you. I'd hug you if I didn't think I'd end up with coffee all over me."

***

"So, what have you been up to since I last saw you?"

Dean had been quite happy listening to Sam tell Mim about Stanford. He wasn't quite sure how to answer her question without sounding like a lunatic.

"Oh, nothing very interesting. I've done a bit of travelling, went and got this one from school. Nothing to write home about."

"You know, I tried to call you once or twice but your cell was disconnected." Mim commented.

"Yeah, I accidentally dropped it in some water. It was never the same after that." That was a lie; his phone had been smashed to pieces when he was thrown into a brick wall by a spirit who really didn't want to be sent to…well, wherever it is spirits go when their earthly remains are salted and burned.

"You don't need to be so evasive you know. I don't care if you've got another girlfriend now or something. I mean, we did break up."

"What? No, I haven't been in one place long enough to have a steady girl. Not since you. I just really haven't done anything worth talking about."

Mim sighed. "You always did have your secrets, didn't you? I never quite figured you out."

It was obvious to Dean that she didn't believe him, though he wasn't sure exactly which part of his story she thought was fishy - probably writing off almost five years as completely unremarkable. Either way it didn't matter – Dean would far rather Mim thought him a liar than that she thought him insane. Straitjackets had never been Dean's thing.

The conversation seemed to die at that point.

They sat in awkward silence. Dean sipped at his coffee, not knowing what to say. He wanted to tell Sam about Evelyn but he couldn't help thinking that it might be better to share that news in private. He wasn't sure how Sam would react; especially once he knew that Dean had promised to take care of the child should Mim die. Dean was confident that Sam would come round eventually but there might be a bit of shouting and lecturing beforehand that Mim probably didn't need to hear.

"So Mim, tell me about Australia." Sam was attempting, rather lamely Dean thought, to break the ice.

"Well, what do you want to know?"

"Where did you grow up?"

"In South Australia, in a little town on the coast…"

Dean might have found the conversation about Mim's childhood home interesting if he wasn't so preoccupied. As it was he was somewhat relieved when he and Sam got up to leave. As he reached the edge of the veranda he hesitated and turned back to Mim.

"Hey, do you think it'd be okay if I came round to see you tomorrow? You and Evelyn?"

Mim smiled. "Yeah, I think we'd like that."

Dean could feel Sam's eyes on him as he returned to the impala and he wondered if they'd even make it back to the motel before Sam got him to spill.

***

"Dean, why do you want to see Evelyn again?"

Dean was impressed that Sam had been able to hold off until they got inside. He sat on his bed and faced his brother. There was no point trying to get out of this; he'd have to tell Sam sooner or later. He took a deep breath.

"Because she's my daughter."

Sam just stared.

"You know, you might want to close your mouth before you start swallowing flies." Dean couldn't stand the silence.

"Dean, how long have you known?"

Dean looked at his watch. "About forty five minutes, give or take. Mim told me when we were making the coffee."

"Haven't you ever heard of using protection? I mean, how the hell do you expect to be a father to this kid with the way we live, what we do?" Sam demanded, his voice rising.

"Do you have to shout? Yes I know about protection, jackass. I use it all the time. Unfortunately it doesn't always work. I didn't do this on purpose Sam."

Sam sighed. "I know, I just…do our lives really need to be more complicated?"

"Maybe you should sit down?"

"Why?" Sam asked suspiciously.

"Because there's something else I have to tell you. Now sit down before you blow something."

Sam sat, scowling. "Fine, I'm sitting."

Dean licked his lips. "Sam, Mim might be dying. I know you probably won't like this but I promised to take care of Evelyn if she doesn't make it. She's family Sam, and if Mim dies we'll be all she has left."

"What about Mim's relatives?"

"They're all dead, Sam. Look, I know you don't like it – hell, I don't like it much myself, but Evelyn is my child and I'm not leaving her at the mercy of the state. God knows what might happen to her."

"I know Dean, but how are we going to look after a child? Do you really want Evelyn to have the same crappy childhood we did?"

"Not really." Dean sighed. "It's going to be a lot better for her if Mim survives. But if she doesn't…well, I can't just leave her."

Sam shook his head. "I don't like it, but you're right."

"Of course I'm right. I'm the oldest."

"Jerk."

"Bitch."

* * *

Thanks for reading!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: Still don't own anything.

A/N: Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this and especially those who review - it makes my day to read your comments! One warning - there is a semi spoiler for episode 1 of season 2 in here. I suspect the vast majority of you saw that episode ages and ages ago but just in case...

**Chapter Six**

It had been a relief for Dean to leave the motel room. Sam had been scouring the internet all morning looking for a way to kill an ijiraq. At the same time, Dean had been discovering whole new worlds of extreme boredom. There was nothing worth watching on TV, the weapons were all sparkling clean and in tiptop condition – in short there was nothing for Dean to do except fidget and pace. Sam had alternated between swearing at the computer for not giving him any information and swearing at Dean for being annoying. Frankly, Dean was lucky to be alive and the computer was lucky it hadn't been thrown out a window. When Sam had finally snapped and told Dean to go visit Evelyn so he could research in peace Dean had jumped at the chance.

The air was filled with the sound of wind chimes. Looking around Dean saw that they were hanging from Mim's veranda. They swayed in the light breeze tinkling softly, the seashells they were decorated with making a clicking sound when they touched.

Reaching the front door, Dean rang the bell and waited. Footsteps sounded inside the house and within moments Mim opened the door. She was wearing rather an odd outfit and Dean didn't quite hide his surprise quickly enough.

"You noticed the weirdo outfit then? You wait. Evie will probably want you to be Prince Charming."

"Why would she want me to be Prince Charming?" Dean was mildly confused.

"Well, lately Evie is obsessed with Cinderella. She likes to play it with me. She's Cinderella, of course, and I'm the ugly stepsisters – hence this hideous thing," She gestured at the baggy bamboo patterned dress and wrinkled her nose in distaste, "which leaves Prince Charming for you. I'm sure Evie will find you a suitable costume in her dress up box."

Just then, Evie appeared beside her mother. "Come on, you can't miss the ball!" She tugged at Mim's hand.

"Hang on a sec darl, you haven't even said hello to Dean yet."

Evie stopped tugging and looked at Dean for the first time. "Hi Dean. Where's the other man?"

Dean smiled at her. "You mean Sammy? He's back at the motel saying naughty words to his computer."

"Why is he saying naughty words?"

"Because the computer won't tell him what he wants to know and that makes him grumpy."

"Oh. We're playing Cinderella. Want to play? You can be the prince!"

Mim stifled a laugh and shot an 'I told you so' look in Dean's direction.

Dean sighed. How bad could it be?

***

Ten minutes later Dean found himself dancing with Evie. Another revolting denizen of Evie's dress up box was tied around his neck like a cape. This dress was covered in a puke worthy pink and orange floral pattern and half the world's supply of lace. Why anyone would even bother making this dress was beyond Dean. It wouldn't even look good on a hanger. Dean silently thanked God that Sam wasn't there to see as he'd never have lived it down. It would have been worse still if Sam had thought to take a picture of the scene with his cell phone. Mim watched obediently from the sofa, wondering out loud who this girl was and why the prince was dancing with her.

The story of Cinderella was quite unfamiliar to Dean. Even if he'd been a girl, his father had never been interested in fairytales unless they were somehow related to a hunt. As it was, Dean's knowledge of fairytales was largely restricted to those he'd seen porn versions of and he suspected those weren't always accurate. His lack of knowledge wasn't much of a problem though. Evie seemed quite happy to boss him around. It was a relief when the game finally ended, Mim informing Evie that she and Dean were going to have a cuppa.

They had just entered the kitchen when Evie turned to Dean and asked, "Did you make the monster go away?"

Dean swore silently. Of all the questions Evie could have asked him she had to come out with that one.

"What monster darl?" Mim answered with a question of her own.

"The monster that took me away and left me in the forest."

Mim shot Dean a look that clearly said 'what on earth is she on about?' Dean sighed and wondered how he was going to explain this and not end up looking like he was a sandwich short of a picnic.

He settled on reassuring Evie. He could deal with Mim later.

"Don't worry Evie. It went away and I promise I won't let it come back."

Mim gave him a confused look but didn't say anything.

***

Evie was busy building a house for her doll when Mim finally asked Dean the inevitable question.

"What was all that about a monster?"

Dean had been holding a mental debate on the subject ever since Evie brought it up. Could he trust Mim with his secret or should he try to explain the ijiraq away, blame it on Evie's overactive imagination? He wasn't sure why he was even considering telling Mim the truth. After all, he'd told Cassie and look how that had turned out.

"She's probably imagining things."

"No. You're bullshitting me, I can feel it."

Dean sighed. Even his best game face had rarely worked with Mim. It was almost as if she could read his mind.

"Fine, there was something but I think that if I tell you what it was you'll have me carted off to the loony bin."

"Just tell me Dean. I promise I won't call you a fruitcake."

"You might find it hard to keep that promise."

She gave him an exasperated look. "Dean, bloody well spit it out will you?"

"Fine, but don't say I didn't warn you. It was an ijiraq, a creature that takes children when they're playing hide and seek by promising to find them a really good place to hide."

He watched Mim, expecting her to run away and call the men in white coats at any minute. But she surprised him.

"Well that explains more than it doesn't. Is this what you've been hiding from me?" She sounded curious and not a bit freaked.

"Define 'this'." What the hell had he just explained? Dean was mildly curious himself.

"Well, you said last night that you look into weird occurrences. Now you're saying you saved Evie from a mythical creature. Together with what I saw back when we were together it sort of makes sense." She paused, "In a weird sort of way."

This response only served to get Dean even more confused. "What did you see when we were together?"

"I know what's in the boot of your car Dean. I remember the strange wounds you used to come home with sometimes. Honestly, I found it hard to believe that any job could require as much travel as yours apparently did but I never got the sense that you were lying when you said you had to go away for work. It sounds ridiculous but the idea that your job is fighting monsters up and down the country is the only thing that really seems to fit…well, either that or you're seriously challenged in the sanity department but I don't think you are."

Dean just stared. How the hell had she found the arsenal in the impala's trunk? After his experience with Cassie he'd taken pains to make sure Mim never found out the truth about him.

"When were you looking in the trunk of my car?"

"I was curious. I knew you were hiding something and you never let me get anywhere near the boot of your car so it made sense that whatever was in there might tell me something about your secret. I'm sorry; I know I shouldn't have gone snooping."

"You saw all that and you didn't take off running in the other direction. Why?"

"You're a good bloke Dean. I never doubted that." Mim stated it as if it should have been obvious.

"Well, you're right. Sam and I do hunt supernatural things."

"What about your dad? When you left the last time you said it was so you could help him. Does he hunt these things too?"

Dean swallowed. "Yeah, he did."

"Oh Dean, I'm sorry. What happened?"

Mim was just too perceptive, Dean decided. He didn't really want to talk about it, that particular wound was still too fresh, but he could give her the abridged version.

"I was in trouble and he…he died to save me. Please don't ask me to say any more about it. It's bad enough having Sam constantly at me to talk about my feelings."

"Fine, I won't push. But you know, bottling things up doesn't always work out very well. Talking to Sam occasionally probably wouldn't hurt."

Of course she was on Sam's side. Mim was a girl and Dean sometimes thought Sam was a bit too in touch with his inner Samantha.

"Whatever. Anyway, so this…" Dean's voice was drowned out by his cell. He smiled apologetically at Mim and answered it.

"Found anything Sammy?"

He listened intently for a few moments.

"Ok, I'm coming."

* * *

Thanks for reading!


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: still don't own anything.

A/N: Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this story and especially those who have taken the time to review - I love reading your comments!

**Chapter 7**

When Dean had left Mim collapsed on the sofa. She wasn't really feeling all that good but had put on a brave face for her guest. Evie settled next to her with a pile of books. Neither of them noticed the creature watching them from behind one of the heavy curtains that framed the window. It waited patiently until Mim had fallen asleep and then, when Evie was half way through 'reading' the story of _Jemima Puddleduck_ to her teddy bear, it made its move.

***

"So tell me again, how are we killing this thing?" Surely the solution couldn't be as simple as Sam would have him believe.

"We're going to use consecrated lead rounds."

"And why do you think that will work?"

Sam huffed impatiently.

"You said yourself that the consecrated wrought iron rounds caused it a lot of pain. Ordinary lead rounds would have had a similar effect because lead is highly poisonous to ijiraqs. Together, lead and consecration should be enough to kill it."

"It just sounds too easy. Are you sure this is going to work?"

"I'll try it out on you if you're not careful! Look, it was all I could find and if it doesn't work I'll be really pissed off, but for now it's our best bet. So just shut up and drive will you?"

"Fine, just answer me one thing. Assuming that your information wasn't just posted on the internet by some bored dumbass who wouldn't know shit from clay about the supernatural, how are we going to find the damn thing?"

"Honestly, I don't know. The only thing that seems to attract it is playing hide and seek, but since we're not children I don't think that will work for us. As long as we have weapons and we stick together there's no harm in looking for it anyway is there?"

Dean nodded and pressed the accelerator a little harder. The impala roared down the road heading for the woods.

***

"MUMMY!!!"

Mim was woken abruptly by a high pitched scream. She opened her eyes to see a seriously ugly looking creature grabbing at her daughter. She reached out with one arm to clamp Evie tightly to her chest and with the other she reached for the phone that rested on the side table. It was a good thing she was wearing the same jeans she'd had on last night or she wouldn't have had the piece of paper with Dean's number scrawled on it in her pocket. She dialled feverishly and waited impatiently for him to answer while she tried desperately to keep a hold of Evie as the creature pulled at her with all its might.

***

"Yeah?" Not recognising the number on the display, Dean wasn't about to say who was speaking.

He immediately recognised the panicked voice on the other end, and his heart seemed to leap into his throat as he realised what she was telling him.

"Ok, I should be able to get to you in about ten minutes. Just stay calm and do everything you can to keep it away from you. Don't let it leave the house with Evie." Dean executed a u turn as he spoke, turning the impala back towards the town. He turned to Sam.

"That piece of shit is trying to take Evie again." Dean growled as he pressed on the accelerator with a lead foot.

***

Five minutes later Dean pulled up in front of Mim's house with a loud screech.

"Sorry baby." Dean muttered as he switched off the ignition and jumped out.

He ran up the path with Sam following a step behind and kicked in the door. The plan had been to pick the lock so as not to alert the ijiraq to their presence but that idea was discarded immediately at the sound of Evie screaming.

They raced through the house in the direction of the screaming and entered the living room just in time to see the ijiraq swipe a clawed hand at Mim's side, opening five nasty looking gashes that bled profusely. In pain, she began to lose her grip on Evie.

"Hey!"

The ijiraq turned at Dean's shout. It glared at the brothers with a look of pure, undisguised hatred in its eyes. Dean began to reach for his gun before he remembered it was useless because it was loaded with the wrong kind of bullets. Plus, he didn't really want Evie to see them kill the creature. She had probably been traumatised enough without witnessing that.

"Sam…" He started to tell Sam to hand over his gun and look after Mim and Evie while he led the creature away but he was cut off by a loud shriek from the ijiraq as it charged at them.

Dean, remembering the thing's apparent inability to change course once it had started running, motioned at Sam to step to the side. Sam looked mildly confused but did it anyway. As Dean had hoped the ijiraq hurtled past them and out into the short hallway that led to the front door where Sam, moving with the quick grace of practice, turned and shot it with a consecrated lead round. It fell to the ground, bleeding black blood on to the tiled floor.

While Sam made sure that the creature was dead, Dean turned his attention to Mim and Evie. The gashes in Mim's side were still bleeding, she was pale and she shook uncontrollably as though she was going into shock. Evie clung to her, sobbing.

"Hey, it's ok, you're safe now, I gotcha."

There was no response from either of them. Evie showed no inclination to let go of her mother so Dean covered them with the blanket he snagged from the armchair before stripping off his over shirt to staunch the flow of blood. It didn't appear to have slowed at all since the wounds were first opened and Dean wondered if the ijiraq's claws might have contained something that was preventing Mim's blood from clotting. It soon soaked through his shirt.

"It's dead." Sam's voice broke into Dean's reverie.

"Good. Sam, help me get Mim out to the car. She needs a hospital."

* * *

Thanks for reading!


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Still don't own anything.

A/N: Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read this story and especially to those who have taken the time to review - I really appreciate it.

**Chapter Eight**

Dean hated hospital waiting rooms. The seats were always beyond uncomfortable and the feelings of fear and anxiety overwhelming. He sat beside Sam with Evie curled up in his lap, waiting for news on Mim. The little girl hadn't wanted to leave her mother and prying her away so that the doctors could do their work had been no mean feat. Now she clung to Dean like a limpet.

They had been sitting there for two hours and still hadn't been told anything about Mim's condition. Dean was growing increasingly impatient, but for Evie's sake he was making an effort to hold his temper in check. At least it was probably safe to assume that Mim was still alive – surely they would have been told if she'd died.

***

Three hours, and more coffees than Dean cared to count, later they were finally approached by a doctor. Evie had fallen asleep, Sam couldn't wait until Dean was able to fetch his own coffee again, and Dean was running an internal commentary that would have made the most foul mouthed of sailors blush.

"Mr Harrington?"

It took a second for Dean to realise the doctor was talking to him.

"Call me Dean. How is she?"

"Dean, my name is Dr Marley. I believe you came in with Miriam Stenner?"

The doctor's tone was solemn and Dean was filled with a sense of foreboding.

"Yes. What's happened?"

"I'm afraid I have some bad news. Perhaps you'd like to come somewhere more private to discuss it?"

Feeling quite certain he knew what the bad news was and not trusting his voice Dean simply nodded.

"Right this way then." Dr Marley waited for them to get up; no easy feat for Dean with a sleeping four year old in his arms, and led the way.

They followed her in silence, down a corridor beside the reception desk and into a small room containing a sofa and a couple of armchairs. Sam sat down on one side of the sofa and Dean immediately took the other side, instinctively seeking the comfort of his brother's presence. Mercifully, Evie remained asleep.

Dr Marley sat down in one of the armchairs opposite them.

"I'm so sorry to have to tell you this but Miriam didn't make it."

There was silence for a moment, before Dean repeated his earlier question.

"What happened?"

"Put simply, Miriam lost too much blood. There was also the matter of one of the gashes having pierced her colon. Even if she'd survived the blood loss she was likely to develop peritonitis and what with the cancer and the way the treatment for that messes with the immune system…well, peritonitis has been known to kill even otherwise healthy individuals."

The silence dragged on. Dean didn't have a reply and apparently Sam didn't either.

"Look, you can sit in here for as long as you like. Feel free to ask me any questions you may have and if either of you would like to see Miriam, you know to say goodbye or anything, I can arrange that. I can also arrange counselling if you would like."

"Thanks, but I don't think we'll be needing that." Dean finally spoke.

Dr Marley nodded. "That's fine, but if you change your mind all you have to do is ask."

"Can we have some time alone now?"

"Certainly. If you need anything or you want to see me again just speak to Emily at the front desk and she'll sort it out for you."

"Thanks."

Dean waited until she'd gone before turning to Sam.

"Well, you know what this means. We better get that ijiraq cleaned up and then get the hell out of dodge."

"Do we really need to run so soon? I mean, think about it Dean. If we do a runner now with Mim's child, don't you think the police will get suspicious that we had something to do with her death?"

"Maybe." Dean conceded. "But they'd have a hell of a time passing those claw marks off as the work of a man. I'm more concerned that someone's going to turn up to take Evie away from me."

Sam sighed. "You have a point. Ok, so say we take off now. Where are we gonna go?"

"Bobby's." Dean answered immediately.

"You've already been planning this haven't you?" Sam accused.

"Yeah, so?"

"Nothing."

"Well come on then. Let's go get rid of that son of a bitch before it starts to stink."

***

Removing the ijiraq's body was not a difficult task. For something that could inflict so much damage it certainly didn't weigh very much. The biggest problem was the blood and Dean left Sam to scrub at the tiles while he packed a bag for Evie, who had mercifully been too busy crying to really notice the dead creature. Taking her to her bedroom she calmed down enough to pick out which clothes they should take and a few toys and books. Then Dean asked her where the photo albums were kept. He didn't care how many there were or how much space they might take up in the trunk, he was determined that his little girl would know all she could of the mother she had lost. He got a strange look from Sam as he carried the heavy stack out to the car but he didn't care.

***

The trip to Bobby's place took the better part of a day, or rather all of the night and part of the day. Dean had considered stopping for the night when they were a safe distance from Evanston, after all they were now travelling with a child, but after seeing that Evie seemed quite content to sleep in the back of the impala he dropped that idea. That was where she stayed, snuggled up in an old blanked and clutching Lolly the stuffed dragon, when the boys stopped briefly in the middle of nowhere to salt and burn the ijiraq's body. She had woken as Dean pulled into a service station for gas and something to eat. Pale tendrils of early morning light had begun to creep across the sky and Dean could see in the rear view mirror that her eyes were open.

"Hey there Sweetie, you hungry?"

Evie had nodded her head, yes.

"You like toasted cheese sandwiches?"

Another nod.

"Ok then, I'll buy you one when I go in to pay for the gas. Might get one for me too. Should we get one for Sammy as well?" He motioned at his sleeping brother.

More nodding.

"Well that's settled then. You wait here and I'll be back soon with the food." Dean made to open the door.

"No!"

Startled, Dean jerked his hand away from the door handle as though burnt.

"What's wrong?"

"Can I come with you?"

"Well yeah, I guess. But if you come with me who's going to keep Sammy company?"

"He's asleep."

Going by Evie's expression Dean gathered there was an unspoken _'dumbass'_ at the end of that sentence.

"Well how about you stay in here while I pump the gas and then you can come with me when I go into the store?"

"Ok." Evie nodded her agreement.

It was a good thing that Sam was awake by the time Dean and Evie got back to the car. Evie didn't want to leave Dean's side and given the trauma the child had been through, or so he told himself, Dean felt it was acceptable to give in to her pleas and sit in the back with her. This meant that Sam had to drive. Dean didn't miss the amused smile playing on Sam's lips.

"Shut up Sam!"

***

Evie seemed to settle into Bobby's house fairly quickly. She would have teary moments but a good long cuddle with Dean seemed to settle her down fairly quickly. He didn't know how to tell her that her mother had died. He was saved the trouble by Evie herself. It was evening and she was sitting with Dean in an armchair in Bobby's living room in front of the fireplace at the tail end of her latest crying episode.

"Mommy's gone isn't she?" Evie whispered. "Like Jenny Angel's little brother."

Dean didn't know who or what Jenny Angel was but it seemed that in her own way, Evie understood what was happening. Maybe Mim had spoken to her about it before; after all she had known that her future was uncertain.

"I'm sorry Sweetie, but yeah she is." Dean stroked her hair.

"What's going to happen to me?"

"Sammy and I will look after you. I know it's scary but it'll be ok. I lost my mommy when I was your age and I turned out ok."

"I love you Dee."

"I love you too Evie." The words caught in Dean's throat as he choked back tears. In an effort to lighten the mood before he ruined his manly reputation by crying, Dean turned his attention to the fire.

"Hey Evie, look at the fire. Can you see anything in the flames?"

Evie looked into the flames, squinting in concentration. "Mommy's there."

To Dean's surprise he could see the image clear as day. It was Mim as she was before she got sick with wild curls just like Evie's framing her face. He could see her large eyes and sensuous lips set in a gentle smile. Then the picture dissolved back into the flames it had been made of. Dean didn't know what to make of it. Was it a figment of his imagination or had Evie actually created a picture in the fire?

"Can you see anything else?"

Again Evie stared into the fire, deep in concentration. Then she nodded. "Your mommy's there too."

And Mary was there, looking just as Dean remembered her. Long hair fell about her face in soft waves and it seemed that the flames it was made of were particularly pale as though trying to imitate the golden blonde colour of it. She smiled at Dean with love in her large eyes. Dean could only stare in shock.

He was jolted back to reality by a sound from behind and turned to see Sam standing there, eyes fixed on the fire and shining with unshed tears. In that moment Dean knew that he hadn't been imagining things. Sam wouldn't be on the verge of crying if he couldn't see the image of their mother.

The question was, what did this mean? It seemed life with Evie was going to be more interesting than Dean had thought.

* * *

Thanks for reading! This chapter marks the end of 'Hide and Seek', but as I don't think I've quite finished with Evie I've started writing a sequel. I already know the basics of what it is going to be about but if anyone has any suggestions feel free to let me know.

A/N Jenny Angel is the title character in a children's book written by Margaret Wild.


End file.
